Boothroyd happy with Cobblers’ mix of youth and experience

Jeremy Casey

Aidy Boothroyd believes he has put together the perfect blend of youth and experience as the Cobblers prepare to kick off the new Sky Bet League Two season.

Town play their first game of the campaign at York City this afternoon (ko 3pm), and go into the fixture on the back of an encouraging 2-1 pre-season friendly win over Championship side Leicester City.

It was a performance that put a spring in the step of Boothroyd, and now he is challenging his squad to take that standard of play into the serious stuff.

“I’ve got some good players at my disposal, and the stick I’ve got to hit them with now is to reach the heights (of the Leicester game) on a regular basis,” said Boothroyd.

“I have had good players before, but I just think that this group are a different calibre and I think we have got the makings of a really good team.

“I think potentially the players I am most excited about are Danny Emerton and JJ Hooper, and we’ve got a nice group of players in their late teens and early 20s that may well be the future of the club.

“We’ve got a nice group of experienced players as well and it’s up to us to mould all that together to see if we can create a team that not only wins games but also entertains as well.

“We’ve got a smaller group of players this year which is by choice, but I still think we have got a group that can challenge providing we can hang onto the coat tails of the leading teams in the division until the time when it really counts.”

Youn can get updates from today’s game on Twitter by following @chronsport and @JeffersonLake

There will also be a full report and reaction at www.northamptonchron.co.uk following the game.